6 Tips on How to Tailor Your Resume to a Job Description (Examples)

You're about to learn everything you need to know about customizing your resume to match the position you're applying for. But first, here's a tricky question:

What does a hiring manager look for in the right candidate?

Well, that depends on the job.

A sales recruiter wants someone who can sell. An engineering recruiter wants someone who can engineer.

So, how do you use your skills and achievements to persuade the hiring manager that you're the best candidate for the position?

You need to tailor your resume to every job description, and you need to know how to use the right resume keywords.

I know you're probably thinking - But that's going to take ages!

It’s way easier than it sounds.

This guide will show you how to tailor your resume to a specific job or an employer by finding the skills and keywords recruiters are looking for, ranking them, and putting them in critical places on your resume. And then it will tell you how to link those skills to your achievements.

The only way to beat both is to saturate your resume with keywords from the job description - aka tailoring your resume.

Keywords are important because it's the primary way recruiters source candidates on LinkedIn and in their HR systems (ATS). A candidate whose resume doesn't include the exact-match keywords will not show up in the search. The job description is the best place to identify the top keywords.

James Hu

Founder & CEO at Jobscan

Sounds complicated, right? In fact, it couldn’t be easier.

Before you get started, here is a sample job description and a tailored resume example:

Take a look at the highlighted keywords in the job description.

Can you see how they are reflected in the resume?

You should try and put the keywords all over your resume: in the resume summary, skills, and in your experience.

Draw Attention to Your Keywords Using Numbers and Achievements

Once you’ve got all of your keywords in place, it’s time to make them sparkle.

One thing that will make your resume better than any other is demonstrating how well you use your skills.

Adding details like numbers and achievements will spice up your keywords.

For example:

Let’s say you want to be a waiter at a fancy restaurant. The job description says:

Excellent customer service skills required.

So you write “responsible for customer service” as a bullet point under your present retail job.

Stop right there. What does “responsible for customer service” even mean?

Nothing.

Here’s what you should write:

“Decreased returns by 10% through excellent customer service.”

Why?

First, the number will draw the eye of the hiring manager directly to this point - where you’ve written the desired keyword verbatim.

(You’ve just passed the scan test.)

Second, the hiring manager can see exactly how your customer service skills result in something tangible. When you’re in charge of customer service, customers are happier with their purchases, resulting in fewer returns.